1
The High End Of Low
Marilyn Manson
(2009)
Genre: Alternative
Runtime: 72:12
Tracklist
1. "Devour" 3:46
2. "Pretty as a Swastika" 2:45
3. "Leave a Scar" 3:55
4. "Four Rusted Horses" 5:00
5. "Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon" 3:39
6. "Blank and White" 4:27
7. "Running to the Edge of the World" 6:26
8. "I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies" 9:02
9. "WOW" 4:55
10. "Wight Spider" 5:33
11. "Unkillable Monster" 3:44
12. "We're from America" 5:04
13. "I Have to Look Up Just to See Hell" 4:12
14. "Into the Fire" 5:15
15. "15" 4:21
A lot of the info in this thread is courtesy of Nick Kushner (RIP) who was a huge Marilyn Manson fan and also famed for his artwork partially painted in his own blood. I also painstakingly originally submitted the lyrics for this album on Songmeanings.com if anyone but Ian Parker cares (the font in the booklet is incredibly small).
Whenever someone asks my favourite film my go to answer would be “Billy Madison” and still is to this day. Whenever someone would ask what my favourite album is I’d also answer “Mechanical Animals” by Marilyn Manson. The thing is I’ve watched Billy Madison countless times, I rarely listen to Mechanical Animals anymore. Mechanical Animals is the fine China this is the plastic plate for every day consumption.
While that is a brilliant album albeit very derivative of Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust album, “The High End of Low” is undeniably the album I’ve listened to the most in my life by a distance. Plus I tend to like post 2003 Marilyn Manson more with a gravelly singer-song writer vibes.
2009 was a horrible time in my life, I won’t get into it considering I deleted the my life story thread but basically a family member was taking almost all of my money. So spending $22 on this was a big investment. I’d sit at home, listen to this and write my fan fic Death Watch and do very little else at a very low point in my life. As explained in the Watch the Throne review I moved to live with my dad and escaped said situation.
System this isn’t Oprah, talk about the album!
“I went through a tough period over Christmas, during which I learned the difference between love and dependence, and the difference between weakness and desire. And it made a big difference in my life. So I came back [to the studio] on January 2, and I saw my only friends, which at this point is the band, and everyone asked me, “How’re you doing?” And I said, “Well, I’m at the high end of low.” And automatically I knew that that’s what the record was going to be called.“
There is album artwork all through this of Marilyn Manson’s home talking about what we went through emotionally during this period when he lived alone. This album also featured the return of bassist Twiggy Ramirez who left the band in 2002 unhappy with creative direction.
He then did an interview years later talking about how he was living alone for the first time, but I ate that publicity up at the time :lol:
Unlike the huge concept albums of the past like the much acclaimed Triptych of albums “Antichrist Superstar” “Mechanical Animals” and “Holy Wood” this is a much more human Marilyn Manson than the characters portrayed in the aforementioned albums. There is a lot of references to film, such as the disc art being a film reel and track 8’s obviously, as well as being an actor on the stage and performing and basically masking your real self behind the performance.
Basically: “Living the gimmick brother!”. Also “MAN” is only capitalised on the cover,
basically the struggles of being Brian Warner when you’re expected to be Marilyn Manson.
The album title and artwork is influenced by both David Bowie’s and Low and the film the Kurosawa film “High and Low” which is excellent. Also references to the film The Exterminating Angel which unlike the guests at this dinner party I ended up leaving and not watching all of it.
Yeah, cool System are you going to talk about the music?
Fine, track by track
DevourOne of my favourite Manson tracks. A lot fans hated 2007’s Eat Me,Drink Me softness and called it “emo garbage” with it being a complete 180 from 2003’s burlesque inspired rock album “The Golden Age of Grotesque”.
So the start of it you’re think you are essentially getting EMDM part 2 and then it kicks in. It’s no Antichrist but it’s great to hear this album is going to have some kick to it.
“You're not crying, this is blood all over me” is such a great lyric and always comes to mind when someone massively downplays something.
I love how abruptly the track ends when he attempts to sing “and I’ll love you if won’t make me stop” a second time just before he gets “stop” out.
Pretty as a SwastikaA quote from Walter Winchell about filmmaker Leni Reifenstahl who is most well known for directing Nazi propaganda films. I remember my history telling us what a great filmmaker she was despite her being a horrible person.
The irony is not lost on me.
No this track doesn’t go full Kanye, it’s just Manson simping over a woman. Probably the most industrial sounding track Manson had put out in a long time.
Leave a ScarThis is incredibly catchy and easy to sing along to.
Four Rusted HorsesA sign of things to to come with Manson seemingly come to terms with his somewhat damaged voice and going in a much more acoustic and bluesy direction.
Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddonThe lead single of the album has everything you expect from a Manson hit.
Check out the hilariously bad censored version back when VEVO would insist on uploading clean versions of everything, why bother?
Blank and WhiteAbsolute banger with Manson going somewhat back to social commentary
On every version of this song the line
“Let's shoot up the mall, the school
Or the president of whatever
Or whoever wants to fight!
Is replaced with a beeping noise that actually works considering the opening lyrics
of the song but as Manson points out, you can shoot up the mall or the school just don’t shoot the president even though that’s not what the lyric is saying :lol:
Running to the edge of the world“See a new beginning rise behind the sun
We can never catch up to it, as fast as we run”
Sounds so good as the Outro plays
I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the MoviesExcluding tracks padded out to reveal a “hidden track”’ this was Manson’s longest song, with 2017’s “Saturnalia” coming the closest.
Great horror style track.
WOWHas the greatest music video of all time
Wight SpiderWouldn’t be out of place on Eat Me, Drink Me considering it’s themes
and that’s not a knock as I’m a fan of that album.
Unkillable Monster“I'm a tightrope walker, I can't find my circus
And I'm damaged beyond repair
Now you're just a coffin of a girl I knew
And I'm buried in you”
I don’t care how angsty and emo these lyrics sound I loved every minute and lyric of this track.
We’re From AmericaAnother incredibly catchy track, as political as this album gets.
“We're from America, we're from America
We speak 'American'”
Is a joke but sadly a phrase I’ve seen uttered in one way or another.
I Have to Look Up Just to See HellMy only gripe with this album is every album except the 1994 debut “Portrait of an American Family” had a title track.
Uh System what about Holy Wood?
Holy Wood’s full title is “Holy Wood: In The Shadow of The Valley of Death” so the subtitle counts.
Yet this song contains the lyric “Timelapse and dancing and rotting in place
And we've reached
the high end of low and instead it gets this cheesy ass title.
Anyway great track (no shit System it’s your favourite album?)
Into the Fire“We'll die alone
Cause I'll break off my own arms
Sharpen my bones
Stab you once for each time I thought of you“
I absolute love the piano on this. This and the closing track really close the album off strong.
15See above.
“I can get by now, I'm not really dead
But I really needed someone to save me
Leaving me alone to die
Is worse than having the guts to kill me”
🔥
Like almost all of Manson’s works there is many references to 15, this obviously being the title of the song and also the 15th track.
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While I’m not going to sit here and be one of these people that cries “this album saved me” this was one of the few joys I had in my life at the time & even years after said time I’d still listen to this constantly.